


Misery

by aleeta6



Series: Destiny [1]
Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Canon Rewrite, Self-Insert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-16 23:33:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29462061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aleeta6/pseuds/aleeta6
Summary: Nightfur was a human, in her past life. In her wildest dreams, she'd never imagined being reborn as a cat in a series she'd read as a child. And even if that had crossed her mind, why was she born before the Prophecy Begins? Why wasn't she born around the time Firestar was an apprentice? All these questions, and she doubts that any of them will be answered.
Series: Destiny [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2184444
Comments: 10
Kudos: 25





	1. Allegiances

**Author's Note:**

> Originally I had this posted on FFN, and it's still there under the penname "Imprisoned Wings". I'll try to update it regularly, but we all know how Legends and Walk Through The Fire is going. And those fics have someone else writing with me... Anyway, without further delay, here is the Allegiance to Misery. ALSO: the only cats that shouldn't exist in this story are Sunpaw, Nightpaw, and Redpaw. The others do exist, I just got excited with a family tree I was working on. So just pretend they'd always been there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know. I got lazy and didn't finish the Allegiances for the other clans. But I just wanted to update this so I could start writing ;-; I'll let everyone know when it's fully done/updated.

[Family tree](https://www.familyecho.com/?p=XGEY5&c=wuk5hepqan&f=741775111271787284), if anyone is curious. It's mostly completed. Redfur's the only one who's not got a set mate yet out of Bluefur, Snowfur, and Nightfur.

**THUNDERCLAN**

**Leader:** Pinestar—red-brown tom with green eyes (apprentice, Nightpaw)

 **Deputy:** Sunfall—bright ginger tom with yellow eyes

**Medicine Cat(s):**

Goosefeather—speckled gray tom with pale blue eyes

Featherwhisker—pale silvery tom with bright amber eyes, long whiskers, sweeping, plumy tail

**Warriors:**

Stonepelt—gray tom (apprentice, Bluepaw)

Swiftbreeze— tabby she-cat with yellow eyes (apprentice, Lionpaw)

Stormtail—blue-gray tom with blue eyes (apprentice, Goldpaw)

Greeneyes— dark brown tom with green eyes (apprentice, Redpaw)

Magpiewing — white tom with black tail (apprentice, Cooperpaw)

Starlingfrost — light brown she-cat 

Adderfang—mottled brown tabby tom with yellow eyes (apprentice, Thistlepaw)

Tawnyspots—light gray tabby tom with amber eyes (apprentice, Rosepaw)

Sparrowpelt—big, dark brown tabby tom with yellow eyes (apprentice, Snowpaw)

Poppydawn—long-haired, dark red she-cat with a bushy tail and amber eyes

Smallear—gray tom with very small ears and amber eyes (apprentice, Sweetpaw)

Thrushpelt—sandy-gray tom with white flash on his chest and green eyes

Robinwing—small, energetic brown she-cat with ginger patch on her chest and amber eyes

Fuzzypelt—black tom with fur that stands on end and yellow eyes

Windflight—gray tabby tom with pale green eyes (apprentice, Silverpaw)

Speckletail—pale tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Dappletail—tortoiseshell she-cat with beautiful dappled coat (apprentice, Goldenpaw)

White-eye—pale gray she-cat, blind in one eye

Patchpelt — black-and-white tom with amber eyes

**Apprentices:**

Nightpaw— black she-cat with blue eyes

Bluepaw— blueish-gray she-cat with blue eyes

Snowpaw— white she-cat with blue eyes

Redpaw — dark red she-cat with green eyes

Cooperpaw — dark ginger tom with dark brown eyes

Goldpaw — golden she-cat with light brown eyes

Silverpaw — silvery-white she-cat with light blue eyes

Thistlepaw— gray-and-white tabby tom

Sweetpaw—white she-cat with tortoiseshell patches

Rosepaw—gray tabby she-cat with a bushy red-orange tail

Lionpaw— magnificent golden tabby tom with thick fur like a lion's mane.

Goldenpaw— she-cat with pale ginger coat

**Queens:**

Fogheart— gray she-cat (Mother to: Cardinalkit, Ashkit, Onyxkit)

Moonflower—silver-gray she-cat with pale, yellow eye (Mother to: Daisykit, Ivykit, and Nettlekit)

Leopardfoot — black she-cat with green eyes (expecting Pinestar's kits)

**Elders:**

Aspensap—brown she-cat with a ginger patch over her left eye; oldest cat in the clans

Weedwhisker—pale orange tom with yellow eyes

Mumblefoot—brown tom, slightly clumsy, with amber eyes

Larksong—tortoiseshell she-cat with pale green eyes

**RIVERCLAN**

**Leader:** Hailstar—thick-pelted gray tom

 **Deputy:** Shellheart—dappled gray tom (apprentice, Oakpaw)

**Medicine Cat(s):**

Brambleberry—pretty white she-cat with black spotted fur and blue eyes

**Warriors:**

Rippleclaw—black-and-silver tabby tom (apprentice, Volepaw)

Corelfall — white she-cat with light brown paws

Jellysting — black tom with brown stripes 

Tideclaw — light gray-blue tom 

Timberfur—brown tom

Echomist—long-haired gray she-cat, fur tipped with white to give her a soft, cloudy appearance

Mudfur—long-haired light brown tom (apprentice, Petalpaw)

Owlfur—brown-and-white tom

Rainflower — pale gray she-cat

Ottersplash—white-and-pale-ginger she-cat (apprentice, Beetlepaw)

Cedarpelt—brown tabby tom, stout and short-tailed (apprentice, Crookedpaw)

Lilystem—gray she-cat

Hollydawn — dark gray she-cat with white stripes (apprentice, Sunpaw)

Brightsky—nimble white-and-ginger she-cat

Piketooth—skinny brown tabby tom with a narrow face and protruding canine teeth

Lakeshine—pretty, long-haired, gray-and-white she-cat

Shimmerpelt—night-black she-cat with glossy pelt

Softwing—small, lithe, white she-cat with tabby patches

Whitefang—pure white tom with tabby-striped tail and brown paws

**Apprentices:**

Petalpaw — tortoiseshell she-cat

Volepaw— gray tom

Beetlepaw— black tom

Sunpaw— light ginger she-cat

Oakpaw— redish-brown tom

Crookedpaw— light brown tom

**Queens:**

Lagoonflower — dark red she-cat with black chest (expecting Jellysting's kits)

Fallowtail — light brown she-cat with blue eyes and soft fur (mother to Graykit, Blossomkit and Willowkit)

**Elders:**

Troutclaw-gray tabby tom

Tanglewhisker-long-haired tabby tom with a thick, knotted pelt

Birdsong-tabby-and-white she-cat with ginger patches around her muzzle, flecked with gray

**ShadowClan**

**Leader:** Cederstar — very dark gray tom with a white belly

 **Deputy:** Stonetooth — gray tabby tom with long teeth

**Medicine Cat(s):**

Sagewhisker — white she-cat with long whiskers

Yellowfang — dark gray she-cat

**Warriors:**

Crowtail — black tabby she-cat (apprentice, Clawpaw)

Brackenfoot — pale ginger tom with dark ginger legs (Yellowkit's father)

Archeye — gray tabby tom with black stripes and thick stripe over eye

Hollyflower — dark-gray-and-white she-cat

Mudclaw — gray tom with brown legs

Toadskip — dark brown tabby tom with white splashes and white legs

Nettlespot — white she-cat with ginger flecks

Mousewing — thick-furred black tom

Deerleap — gray tabby she-cat with white legs

Featherflurry — silver she-cat with white ears and legs

Beeclaw — black tom with amber eyes

Amberleaf — dark orange she-cat with brown legs and ears

Finchflight — black-and-white tom

Blizzardwing — mottled white tom

Lizardstripe — pale brown tabby she-cat with white belly

Frogtail —dark gray tom

Newtspeck — black-and-ginger she-cat

Ashheart — pale gray she-cat (apprentice, Smokepaw)

Raggedpelt — large, dark brown tabby tom (apprentice, Cloudpaw)

Scorchwind — ginger tabby tom

Nutwhisker — brown tom with amber eyes

Rowanberry — brown-and-cream she-cat

Foxheart — bright ginger she-cat (apprentice, Nightpaw)

Wolfstep — gray tom

**Apprentices:**

Cloudpaw — white tom

Clawpaw — scrawny brown tom

Nightpaw — black tom with yellow eyes

Smokepaw — white-and-gray she-cat

**Cats outside of the clans**

Pixie — White she-cat with amber eyes; Kittypet


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

She pried open her eyes, quickly snapping them shut at the bright light, confused as to why it was so difficult. Even if she'd been so exhausted the night before that she'd passed out in her bed, not bothering to change out of her work clothes.

They hadn't felt crusted together, but more like they'd never been opened before. This caused her more confusion. Especially when she felt two bodies on either side of her that didn't feel like her dogs. 

They felt about the same size as her, which didn't make anymore sense. Her dogs always felt bigger. 

She opened her eyes again, squinting at the blurry figure in front of her. The only thing she could make out was some gray colour, which caused her even more confusion. Her dogs were black and brown, not gray. Her bed was white, her room was green. There wasn’t anything gray in her room. She usually laid on her stomach so she wouldn’t be looking outside to see the weather.

She moved to get out of bed, still squinting. She heard an annoyed mew from her left and stopped, turning her head to see a kitten laying there. She turned to the right and saw another kitten there. She frowned. She didn’t have kittens; her mom was allergic to cats. There was no way she’d have cats in her bed. 

She stopped, realising she _wasn’t_ in her bed. While what she was laying in was soft, it wasn’t her mattress. 

“Nightkit’s opened her eyes,” someone commented with amusement, “and it looks like she doesn’t like where she’s laying.”

Whatever she was laying against shifted slightly and yellow eyes entered her vision. Amusement shining in them, despite the clear exhaustion in them. “Welcome to ThunderClan, little one.” something rumbled in their chest - was that a purr? - that sounded soothing.

It took everything in her to not jerk back in shock at the words. ThunderClan? The word sounded vaguely familiar. Like something she’d read many years ago.

“I’m sure you want to go exploring your new home, but you must wait until Snowkit, Bluekit, and Redkit open their eyes.”

Two of the names made her heart stop, as memories of a book she’d read in primary school came flooding back. She closed her eyes, refusing to believe that she’d been reborn - or whatever her situation would be called - into a fictitious book series that was still being written. She refused to believe anything that her mind was trying to tell her. It wasn’t true. And until she had more proof, she couldn’t believe it.

She gave a short nod, letting the voice with yellow eyes believe that she was just disheartened at not being able to explore.

She closed her eyes and tried to get comfortable. She didn’t know how long it would take for Bluekit, Snowkit, and Redkit to open their eyes. It must’ve taken more than she’d thought to open her eyes, for shortly after she closed her eyes again she found herself falling asleep right away.

* * *

The next time she opened her eyes, it was much easier. Maybe because she was slightly annoyed at the voice in her ear saying, “Nightkit! Wakeup! Moonflower said we can’t go outside until everyone’s awake!”

Which, of course, caused an unfamiliar sound out of her. Unfamiliar coming from her, she’d heard it from some of her friends' cats multiple times. A hiss.

“That wasn’t very nice!” The same voice complained, Nightkit turning her head to look at the snowy white kitten. _This must be Snowkit_ , she thought with a sigh. Of course they had names that reflected their pelts. Hers must be black. She pushed herself to shaky legs, unsure how to walk with four legs instead of two.

If anyone made fun of her, which they shouldn’t because apparently she was still a newborn, they could go die in a ditch. This was a new experience for her. She had twenty-four years of walking on two legs. Give or take. It was probably closer to twenty-two, for she doubted she’d been - literally - walking her whole life.

“Now we just have to wait for Bluekit!” Snowkit whispered. Or what was supposed to be a whisper. It was actually pretty loud. But maybe that was because she was right next to Nightkit’s ears. The black kitten flinched as she took her first steps. Her legs were wobbly, but she still instinctively knew how and when to use all four of her limbs and was soon walking on steadier legs. She let out a sigh of relief as she cross the short distance to the red kitten - who she could only assume was named Redkit.

“This is so weird.” she mumbled under her breath. “And utterly unnatural.” it wasn’t loud enough for anyone to hear her, but Redkit’s head turned to her in question, her ears perked curiously.

Nightkit’s ears twitched in embarrassment. Maybe she hadn’t been as quiet as she’d thought she had been.

Once Bluekit opened her eyes, Snowkit was even more excited than she had been when Nightkit had woken up. She was surprised the older cats hadn’t turned their heads towards them. 

Snowkit scurried around their mother, Bluekit tried to follow but was stopped by their mother’s paw on her tail. 

“Where do you think you are going?” Moonflower asked, less exhausted than she had been when Nightkit had opened her eyes, but still clearly tired.

“Outside! I’ve opened my eyes, I decided it was time.” Bluekit replied proudly. Moonflower’s whiskers twitched in amusement. 

“There, Swiftbreeze, I told you she would open her eyes when she was ready.”

Nightkit still refused to believe she had been… reborn into a series she’d been a fan of as a child. Even with the names Moonflower and Swiftbreeze sounding familiar. Once she got outside everything would make more sense. It had to. She still had so much more she had wanted to do with her life; it couldn’t’ve been cut short. 

“Of course,” the tabby cat purred, “I was just thinking about _my_ kits. Leopardkit and Patchkit had their eyes open sooner.”

Moonflower rolled her eyes, “Not all kits can be like _yours_.”

“Nightkit and Redkit had their eyes open much earlier, too.” a new voice commented. Nightkit turned her attention to a solid gray queen, looking as if she were going to give birth any day.

Moonflower snorted in amusement. “Their eyes were only open for a few seconds, Fogheart.”

Their mother turned her attention back to the four of them. “Do you want me to come with you?”

“Is outside dangerous?” Bluekit asked, tilting her head. 

Moonflower shook her head, “Not in camp.”

 _Liar_. Nightkit found herself thinking. Outside the den was plenty dangerous. Even if she didn’t want to admit to herself that she had been born as Bluestar’s litermate, logically speaking they were wild cats. There were plenty of dangerous things for them. Especially since they were so small. Any number of things could come and take them.

“Then no!” Snowkit announced. “We want to explore by ourselves.”

Nightkit glanced at Redkit, who for some reason she felt more of a kinship with than her other two sisters. Redkit rolled her eyes. Nightkit was inclined to agree with the motion. Whatever was said next, she missed, for soon they were being usher out of the warmth of where they stayed.

She squinted at the bright of the sun when they emerged on the other side, taking the time for her new eyes to readjust to the light.

She took in their home. She took a deep breath, surprised at the different scents that hit her nose.

“Where did they go?”

They being Leopardkit and Patchkit.

“I don’t know, but look at that prey!”

Their attention was turned to the pile of small animals in the center of the camp. Nightkit’s ears twitched, a little curious as to what they’d taste like. She’d never liked her food rare, and the meat still being on the bones was about as rare as one could get.

Bluekit went up to it, sniffing curiously. Nightkit was inclined to follow, but before she could, something from the top of the pile fell on the kit. Snowkit’s warning coming just seconds too late.

Redkit snorted as the older cats around laughed in amusement after Bluekit pulled herself out from under the squirrel.

Nightkit couldn’t really deny it anymore. From what she remembered of _Bluestar’s Prophecy_ , things were happening in the same way they had in the story. If not for some unfamiliar names. She didn’t remember reading anything about a cat named Fogheart. But that might be her memory lacking; it had been over ten years since she’d read the book, after all.

She found herself glancing at Redkit and saw the other kit looking just as worried as she felt. The expression was quickly gone before anyone else noticed.

With the other two kits distracted— she supposed she could call them her littermates or sisters— she turned to Redkit. “Something’s bothering you.” she whispered. She didn’t know how much she could say without being called crazy. “Do you also not belong here?”

Redkit turned to face her fully, a silent question in her eyes. 

“Up until … earlier, I guess, I was a human. I got home from work, fell asleep, and woke up as a kit.” She hoped she wasn’t making a mistake. Everything was screaming at her to not tell anyone that, but Redkit wasn’t acting like their two sisters, nor the two older kits they’d heard earlier.

Redkit let out a breath. “Me too,” she whispered. “I just went out to my car for a quick nap, since I had to be back at work in a few hours. Short staffed and all.”

She felt sympathetic towards the situation. “Last year I worked open to closes for almost a month straight, I understand that feeling.”

“Why are we here?” 

“I wish I knew. I just hope we aren’t going to die for _her_ destiny.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah I know it felt a little... weird. The way she just came out to Redkit, but I wanted it out there for both of them. I feel like Redfur and Nightfur are going to be close like Snowfur and Bluefur are.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Nightkit watched Leopardkit and Patchkit practice their hunter’s crouch, with Dapplepaw. She wanted to try, wanted to learn all she could. If she was going to be a cat, she was going to learn all she could before she became an apprentice. Even if that meant not having a … childhood. A kithood. Whatever the term would be.

Maybe if she never got close to Bluekit, she wouldn’t suffer the same fate as Moonflower and Snowkit. Maybe she would actually survive to see the Lake territories. 

She glanced to check on her sisters, blinking back in surprise to see all three of them had wondered off. More like Bluekit had left, Snowkit had followed, and Redkit went with her to make sure both kits weren’t getting into much trouble.

She inwardly frowned at that. Had Redkit or Snowkit tried to get her attention but she’d ignored them? Ugh. She remembered Moonflower telling the four of them to stick together. Her first day as a cat and she couldn’t even follow simple directions from her new mother.

“Did you want to try, Nightkit?” Dapplepaw asked tenderly, as if the apprentice could see that the kit was distracted about something that she shouldn’t be.

Nightkit tilted her head, “I’ll look… clumsy.” she did want to try, but she didn’t want to make a fool of herself. 

“It’ll be your first try.” Leopardkit replied. “Just try and copy us!” the older kit dropped back into a hunter’s crouch.

Nightkit hesitantly copied her, feeling her stomach touching the ground. She felt more like she was stretching instead of trying to copy Leopardkit. Dapplepaw took her tail, put it under Nightkit, and lifted her a little. As soon as her stomach wasn’t touching the ground anymore, she felt her legs straighten a little. She still felt like she wasn’t doing it right; but a little better than she had been before.

“You want to crouch, but not so much that your stomach is touching the ground. You need a bit more tension in your hindlegs so you’re ready to pounce or move when you need to.” Dapplepaw advised.

Before she could try she heard an annoyed mew from the den close to them, a grumpy warrior exited the den, followed by her three sisters. She straightened. Bluekit and Snowkit looked terrified, Redkit looked mildly amused.

“Thank you for showing me a little!” Nightkit said to the apprentice and older kits as she bound over to her siblings. 

“What happened?” she whispered to Redkit as the four of them watched the warrior eat something from the pile.

“We went into the Warriors’ den and accidentally woke up Stonepelt.” Redkit replied. “Lucky that you weren’t there.”

Nightkit snorted, “I would have been if I hadn’t gotten distracted by watching Patchkit and Leopardkit practicing their hunter’s crouch.” She glanced back at where they’d been, surprised that they’d already moved on and were nowhere to be found. She snorted softly. They were probably waiting on Nightkit to leave so they could sneak out of camp or go elsewhere to practice battle moves or something much too inappropriate for a newborn kit to participate in.

They followed Bluekit across camp, Nightkit wondered why nobody wondered what four kits were doing. They couldn’t be up to any good, surely. Maybe they were just thinking that kits would be kits and they needed to get to know their home.

And maybe they _did_ wonder what they were doing, and _were_ watching them but not interfering unless they were getting into something dangerous.

They stopped just outside something that was clearly a den, with vines and lichen covering the entrance. Bluekit started to push herself into the den but Redkit stopped her by putting her tail on the blue kittens back. 

“Remember what happened when we went into the Warriors’ den? We woke up someone sleeping!”

Bluekit hesitated for a second before her curiosity got the best of her. She ignored Redkit’s advice, causing both Redkit and Nightkit to sigh, as the kitten continued pushing her way into the den.

“That’s Pinestar’s den.” an amused voice said behind them, causing Bluekit to quickly back out and the four of them to turn to look at the new voice.

“Hello, Bluekit, Nightkit, Snowkit, and Redkit.” the tom said, amusement still clear in his voice.

“How do you know our names?” Bluekit demanded.

Nightkit wondered if everyone knew their names, or if it was just a few until they got to know their clanmates.

“I was at your kittens.” he replied. “I’m Featherwhisker, the Medicine Cat apprentice.” he said the last word in a slightly bitter tone. Nightkit tilted her head in curiosity. She wondered if anyone else noticed that Featherwhisker wasn’t happy about his current role. Be it that he was a Medicine Cat or an Apprentice. 

“Can I go inside and see, too?” Snowkit asked, her eyes wide and curious. 

“No, I’ll have to tell Pinestar about Bluekit going into his den without permission,” Bluekit looked slightly upset at this. Snowkit’s ears drooped. “He’ll scent you anyway, better to tell him first.”

Nightkit glanced around the camp, realising there were only three dens they didn’t know. Dapplepaw had come out of what she assumed was the Apprentices’ den, they’d left the Nursery, her sisters had wandered into the Warriors’ den, and Bluekit had gone into their leader’s den.

“I’m sure the Elders would love it if you introduced yourselves to them.” Featherwhisker mewed after a few heartbeats of silence. “I’ll show you which den is theirs.”

Bluekit looked like she was about to protest but decided against it. _Finally, she’s showing some brains instead of pure stubbornness._ Nightkit took a deep breath as the thought passed through her, not realising how annoyed she’d become with her sister in the short time they’d known each other.

They made the journey back across camp, to one of the dens close to the nursery. She realised that the Nursery and Elders’ den were right next to each other, both flanked by the Warriors and Apprentice den. They were also the farthest from the camp’s entrance; with the Warriors being the closest, then the Elders’, and then the Nursery. She glanced back where they came from. Pinestar’s den was also closer to the entrance, and then she assumed it was the Medicine Cat’s den. The Nursery was the farthest, by far.

Once they stopped, she realised how much her legs hurt, and they hadn’t traveled very far or for very long. From her sister’s faces, she could tell they were feeling the same. She stifled a yawn, and ignored her growling stomach.

Without prompt from Featherwhisker, the four of them pushed their way into the den. Two heads turned toward them, with one lifting their head in curiosity. 

Featherwhisker let out a sigh, “Where is Aspensap? She knows she’s supposed to be resting. Her cough won’t get better if she doesn’t take care of herself.”

One of the elders snorted. “She was a warrior much longer than any of us have been alive, though Weedwhisker remembers her in her prime.'' The elder who spoke had pale green eyes. 

“I told her she needed to retire much earlier than she did.” another mumbled. 

“I’m sure Cloudberry also mentioned she retire,” the one who spoke first sighed. 

Nightkit’s ears perked. How old was this Aspensap? She sounded like she’d been around for a long time. Maybe there _was_ hope for Nightkit and Redkit to survive to see Firestar and the Lake Territories. She was pretty sure that was years down the line, though. Things were probably going to happen that she didn’t expect, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t hope and dream.

Featherwhisker took a deep breath through his nose, but before he could say anything, the same elder started talking again. 

“I see our newest clanmembers have come to pay us a visit.”

“Yes, Larksong, this is -”

“I’m Bluekit!” Nightkit’s sister announced, cutting off Featherwhisker. Clearly her energy was back. Redkit and Nightkit flinched, whether that was from the shrill tone or the disrespect at cutting off their elder, nobody would ever know. “And this is Snowkit, Nightkit, and Redkit.” she used her tail to point at each of them as she introduced them.

“Welcome to the clan,” the elder purred. “I’m Larksong, as Featherwhisker mentioned. Weedwhisker is the grumpy furball that’s taking a nap, and that’s Mumblefoot,” she used her nose to point over to the elder that had spoken earlier. “You’ll probably meet Aspensap soon. She’s probably out hunting for her meal, since she doesn’t think she’s done her fair share of hunting for the clan.”

From the tone Larksong used when talking about Aspensap hunting, it was clear that she didn’t agree with Aspensap’s thought that she hadn’t done nearly enough for her clan. It was probably a notion shared by many in their clan.

“Send her to Goosefeather’s den when she gets back.” Featherwhisker sighed. 

Mumblefoot snorted but didn’t say anything. “Will do, Featherwhisker.”

The younger tom turned and left the den. 

“Aspensap, despite her age, retired just a season or two ago.” Larksong explained, the den entrance rustling. 

“And I wouldn’t have retired if it weren’t for my hip.” a new voice snorted. Nightkit turned to the new comer, who was thinned with age, though her muscles still rippled under her pelt. 

“Featherwhisker wants to see you.” Weedwhisker mewed from where he laid.

“I’m sure he does.” Aspensap replied, breaking off whatever she was going to say with a cough that sounded painful. Her eyes were still hard and guarded, even while coughing.

Nightkit couldn’t hold back a yawn this time. The motion was soon followed by her sisters. The brown she-cat’s eyes softened. “These must be Stormtail and Moonflower’s kits. Redkit has Rooktail’s eyes.”

Nightkit wanted to know more, but her eyes were drooping shut. “It’ll be a story for another day,” Larksong said gently, “It’s time for them to get back to their mother, I’m sure they’ve had an eventful day.”

Aspensap sighed, “Of course, come along kits. Let’s get you back to Moonflower, and then I’ll go visit Featherwhisker.”

Nightkit would have overthought the tone the brown she-cat had, but it took all of her concentration to put one paw in front of the other as they followed the elder to the Nursery. She didn’t remember climbing into her nest, nestled between Snowkit and Redkit, feeding, or falling asleep.

She barely remembered Bluekit asking, “Who is Rooktail?” and Moonflower responding, after a few moments, “Rooktail was my father. He died before Pinestar became leader. He was Aspensap’s son.”

* * *

She woke with a jolt as Moonflower moved and was hissing something at someone. Her sleepy ears perked as she realised Bluekit and Snowkit were missing, and it was barley nightfall.

“Goosefeather should have been watching them closer! I know it’s not your fault, Featherwhisker, but great StarClan! You’d think my brother would pay more attention to his nieces!”

She heard the worried tone in her mother’s tone. She sleepily turned to Redkit, who looked just as confused, and sleepy.

Bluekit looked horrified as she followed her mother into the Nursery. “Is she dead?” she mewed worriedly.

“No, Snowkit just has to sleep off the Poppy Seeds.” her mother was clearly still worried, and was showing it in her tone. “You must never eat herbs if the Medicine Cats haven’t told you to.”

“We won’t, mama.” Nightkit found herself saying, her tone still drowsy with sleep.

Moonflower let out a sigh as she laid Snowkit in the nest and Bluekit snuggled closer to her sleeping sister.

“Sleep now, my dears. Tomorrow, you’ll meet your father.” Moonflower licked all of them once, her tone softening. Nightkit closed her eyes and found sleep was harder to come by this time. It felt like ages before she finally drifted off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a lot that I want to get through, and hopefully after the next chapter they'll be apprentices (yay). I'm sorry if it seems... chalky. I don't have anyone proof reading and I usually end up writing the full chapter or part in one go because I've found that I forget where I'm going if I stop. I might make a short story side-fic about comparison as to what changed and what's stayed the same; but that won't be for a few more chapters.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Turns out, meeting their father wasn’t as fantastic as Moonflower had made it out to seem. Snowkit had slept off the Poppy Seeds, though her eyes were still blurry with sleep. Nightkit was mildly annoyed that Bluekit and Snowkit had snuck off to do more ‘exploring’ while she and Redkit were asleep.

“Straighten up, Nightkit. Snowkit, straighten your whiskers. Redkit, why are there twigs in your fur? Bluekit! Stop rolling around in the dirt.” her mother chided each of them softly. 

When they’d woken up this morning, Moonflower had decided to ground Bluekit. When the kitten complained, Moonflower reminded her that Snowkit wouldn’t’ve eaten the seeds if Bluekit hadn’t dared her to, and that they were lucky Goosefeather had enough sense to keep death berries away from the general herbs otherwise their ‘adventure’ could’ve ended very differently.

When Bluekit started to protest that it wasn’t fair that  _ she _ was the only one in trouble, Moonflower had told her - with little sympathy - that Snowkit had already learned her lesson. Bluekit would be going to the Medicine Cat’s Den after they met their father to learn the importance of listening and learning from the more experienced cats.

Bluekit had pouted but she’d reluctantly stopped complaining.

Once they were all presentable and Moonflower was happy with their appearance, they waited.

“When will we meet him?” Redkit asked, fidgeting. 

“He should be back from patrol any moment.” Moonflower responded, glancing toward the camp’s entrance. 

Nightkit frowned, wondering why their father hadn’t come to visit them earlier. It was almost as if he weren’t proud to be the father of four daughters.  _ Maybe he visited just after we were born, _ she found herself thinking. She didn’t dwell too long on that. At least she didn’t remember being born again. She could just imagine how traumatic that would’ve been.

The entrance rustled and three warriors and Whitepaw pushed their way through, each carrying a bird or two.

They dropped off their prey on the fresh-kill pile, one of them stopping. 

“They look like they’ll make fine warriors.” the tom that had stopped in front of them said. Nightkit realised this must be their father - Stormtail. She had been right. He was utterly uninterested in them, but she could see that he loved Moonflower. Her mother’s next words confirmed it. 

“Of course they will be, they’re your kits.” Moonflower was trying to not show how much it hurt that he wasn’t interested in their newborns.

He gave a short nod, as if agreeing with her. His gaze raked over the four of them before turning away and walking away.

“Wait! That’s all?” Bluekit mewed incredulously. Nightkit had a feeling her sister had wanted something more from her father. Nightkit was used to parents not being there.

He turned and glanced back at them, “Stonepelt told me how you woke him up yesterday.” he said, his eyes narrowing. “Stay out of the Warriors’ den.” he growled before he continued to walk away.

Bluekit’s ears drooped.

“He was only giving you advice,” Moonflower nuzzled Bluekit’s face gently. “So you know better next time.”

“We already know not to go into the Warriors’ den!” the kitten protested, still clearly hurt at the clear dismissal of their father.

Moonflower strightened, her whiskers led her face gently. "So you know for next time."

Annoyance shown in Bluekit's eyes but she didn’t say anything in response. Nightkit had a feeling her sister was thinking the same thing they were - they already  _ knew _ not to go into the Warriors’ den. Stormtail didn’t have to remind them.

“Goosefeather and Featherwhisker are waiting for you in their den.” Moonflower nudged Bluekit toward the den, where she would probably be helping sort herbs. Bluekit huffed in annoyance before making the short journey to the den, where she was greeted by Featherwhisker.

* * *

“When I was a kit, Seedstar had just become leader. Oakstar - though his name was Oaktail at the time - and Pinepelt were still young warriors at the time.” Aspensap was saying to the four of them two and a half weeks later. Patchpaw and Leopardpaw had become apprentices a week ago, and they were the only kits in the nursery until Fogheart gave birth to her kits. Greeneyes seemed to fret over the queen more than the queen herself did.

“Oakstar?” Redkit asked with a tilt of her head.

“Yes, Oakstar. He was Pinestar’s father.”

Bluekit seemed to have a problem wrapping her head around the idea that their leader had a father at one time.

Nightkit was amused by that. She wished she could have the innocent outlook like Snowkit and Bluekit. Even Redkit seemed to be falling into the role of ‘child’ again. Nightkit really had to catch up with her litermate’s acting. 

“Most of the clan had fallen ill between the time Seedstar became leader, and when my littermates and I became apprentices.”

“Who were your litermates?” Snowkit asked.

“Willowleaf and Mapleshade.” 

Nightkit glanced at Redkit to see if either of the names rang a bell. Mapleshade sounded vaguely familiar, but she couldn’t remember where she heard it from. From the flash in Redkit’s eyes, she knew the name wasn’t someone they should be remembering.

“What happened to them?” Nightkit decided it was her turn to ask a question.

There was a pause, sorrow filling the elder’s eyes. “Mapleshade was killed by a RiverClan cat after she was exiled, Willowleaf died while defending Mapleshade’s young kits against a hawk, not long after Mapleshade’s death.”

Their eyes widened. “Were they outside of Camp? Mama says it’s dangerous past the Gorse Tunnel.” Snowkit mewed. 

Aspensap shook her head, and Nightkit’s stomach dropped. She’d known it was dangerous for wild cats, but she hadn’t realised a predator would attack them from the sky when there were so many of them in one place. “It was broad daylight, there were plenty of cats in the camp at the time. Cloudberry said it was an omen from StarClan that Oakstar had made the wrong choice in exiling their mother, and trying to exile them, if Willowleaf and I hadn’t intervened in the exile… who knows what would have happened. It was storming the night Oakstar kicked Mapleshade out of the clan.” there was a pause, as if Aspensap wasn’t sure she should continue the story, but the four of them were fully invested.

After a moments hesitation she continued, obviously editing the story for their young ears. “Mapleshade swore vengeance on Ravenwing, the medicine cat at the time, Oakstar, and Frecklewish.” 

Nightkit frowned, wondering why a medicine cat, a leader, and supposedly a warrior would specifically be called out. She was about to ask when she heard a yowl for Featherwhisker and Goosefeather. Unable to quel her curiosity, she started toward the exit when Moonflower stuck her head in, “Fogheart’s kitting. Do you mind watching my kits for a bit longer?”

“Of course, Moonflower. We love having the kits for company.” Larksong said. Nightkit froze. She’d forgotten about the other elders, listening to Aspensap’s story. They’d probably heard it a thousand times before. Probably as kits themselves. 

* * *

Nightkit looked down at the new arrivals, it took everything in her to ignore the overbearing scent of blood. They were so small. She knew she wasn’t much bigger than they were, but it was still weird to see someone so small. 

“What are their names?” 

“When can we play with them?”

“Why are they so small?”

Fogheart let out an exhausted mew of amusement. “Their names are Silverkit, Cooperkit, and Goldkit.” The Queen obviously wasn’t going to say anymore. Nightkit watched as Goosefeather took out the bloodied moss. She realised that Fogheart had moved nests and wasn’t sure how she felt about it. She chidded herself,  _ of course she’d have to move. Nobody wants to sleep in the nest they’d just given birth in _ . She watched as the new mother curled around her new kits, quickly falling asleep.

“They’ll be able to play in a few days,” Moonflower replied to her daughters’ questions. “Come, tomorrow won’t come if we don’t sleep.”

The five of them padded over to their nest. Nightkit curled beside her sisters, mother, and willed sleep to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of time skips. I'm sorry. <3


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Nightkit could barely keep her paws still. She and her littermates turned six moons old today! It had been a long time coming and she was excited to finally start training. Redkit looked worried at what them becoming apprentices meant but Nightkit couldn't be bothered. If something bad was going to happen, it could wait. 

It was their turn to be the center of attention – in a good way. 

It also meant they were one step closer to figuring out what their purpose was. With the forest before them, nothing would be able to stop them from getting the answers they'd asked themselves – and each other – since they first opened their eyes.

She thought back to the last six moons. They were filled with misadventures, games, stories from the Elders, and practicing their skills. 

Thistlekit, Rosekit, and Sweetkit had been born about a moon after Silverkit, Cooperkit, and Goldkit. 

She had been fascinated at how almost two moons made a difference in size. She hadn’t noticed herself growing, and it had been another moon before the younger kits had been able to join them in their games.

About two moons ago, Lionkit and Goldenkit had been born. That was about the time Moonflower and Fogheart had moved back into the Warriors Den, so they'd have more room in the nursery. It felt more crowded without them, and she missed seeing them when she first woke up. But it was good practice, she guessed, for when they moved to the Apprentice Den.

Nightkit paused, wondering when she'd started thinking as _months_ as _moons_. She glanced at her siblings and mother, also wondering when she’d started thinking of them as her siblings and mother. It had started out so she could keep up appearances, but at some point they’d become her family.

She watched her siblings reviving their apprentice names, and their mentors. She could barely wait for her turn.

Pinestar made her wait until her sisters had received their mentors: Bluepaw with Stonepelt, Snowpaw with Sparrowpelt, and Redpaw with Greeneyes. 

“Nightkit, until you earn your warrior your name, you will be known as Nightpaw. I will be your mentor.” 

The newly named Nightpaw felt her body freeze. Pinestar was going to be her mentor? She wracked her brain to see if the leader had taken an apprentice in Cannon, but all she could come up with was that he eventually left to become a kittypet and Sunfall got one less life because of it.

The clan murmured behind her, also curious as to why the leader would choose to mentor a cat when he hadn’t been a mentor since becoming leader. It was only the nudging of her mother that made her legs work again and she touched noses with her leader - and mentor.

“Bluepaw! Snowpaw! Redpaw! Nightpaw!” the clan cheered and Nightpaw suddenly forgot the worries of the future. Like she’d often told herself as an adult: the future was a problem for the future, she could only hope for the best. It wasn’t always easy to live by, and she found herself wanting to attempt to change the future, especially since she had a general idea of what was going to happen. 

* * *

Pinestar had led her out of camp. They were exploring the territory today, while her siblings did whatever their mentors had planned for their first day.

By the time the camp was far behind them, Nightpaw’s lungs burned, and her paws ached. She hadn’t realised how much… bigger the territory was. She didn’t think they were even that far away from camp; she could probably find her way back without having to follow Pinestar.

The leader was definitely going slower than he could be, but it was her first time so far away from the camp. The farthest she’d gone was the base of the gorge, and that had been with Moonflower and her sisters.

She wondered what they were doing. Probably not feeling as if their paws were about to fall off. They walked for a while longer in silence before she stopped herself at an invisible barrier, musky smells hitting her nose. Her nose wrinkled. ThunderClan smelled different. More like the falling leaves of autumn. Or the fresh scent of rain.

Nightpaw glanced at her mentor, surprised to find him several steps behind her. “We’re at a border, aren’t we?” she asked, taking another sniff. She got more than a ‘musky’ smell this time. There was a distinct _pine_ smell.

Nightpaw didn’t know the territory well enough yet, or the smells of the other clans, but she’d learn. Eventually, she knew, it would all be second nature. Much like her job had been. She wondered if it'll ever get boring.

Pinestar nodded, “ShadowClan.” He answered her question, though she hadn’t actually asked _which_ clan border they were at. He sounded surprised that she’d stopped herself from crossing without his intervention, though from the tenseness of his body, he’d been ready to pull her back the moment her paw had lifted to take another step.

She backed up, breathing in the more familiar scent of her home territory.

“Rest for a moment, Nightpaw, we’ll return back to camp soon.”

Nightpaw hadn’t realised how nice sitting felt until she was off her paws for a moment. “I’m never going to be able to walk this daily.” she found herself complaining. “My paws already ache and all we’ve done is walk.”

“You just need to get used to being on your paws more. And for longer periods of time,” he responded with a sigh. “It’ll take time, but by the time you’re a warrior this will seem like a break what your duties will consist of.”

She found that hard to believe, but knew she was just finding reasons to complain. Her paws and muscles just weren’t used to the stress she was putting them under. 

Pinestar started to move again and Nightpaw leaped to her paws, running to catch up to him. He hadn’t waited for her to even get up before he walked away at a pace faster than what they’d been previously using.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments. <3 We'll definitely be in more action soon. And probably longer chapters.


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Nightpaw had just enough energy to eat a vole. And half-heartedly nod to her mentor saying she needed to be up with the sun so they could spend the day practicing basic battle and hunting moves. 

She'd decided early on that vole was her favorite to eat; she couldn’t describe how they tasted, but after a few times she'd gotten used to eating utterly raw food. Even picking out the fur from her teeth after eating had started to feel normal after a while.

She had almost gone straight to the nursery before remembering that she didn't sleep there anymore; that it was her first night in the apprentice den. She hadn’t been able to wait to not have to share the den with eight others, the thought hadn’t occurred to her that as soon as she finished her training, she'd be sleeping in a den with many more cats. 

The Warriors Den was probably much roomier than the nursery. 

"We made new nests for you four." Leopardpaw had said. "Dappletail and White-eye did the same for us when we first became apprenticed," the older she-cat mewed when Nightpaw had opened her mouth to sleepily ask why they'd done that. 

She gave a small mew of thanks before claiming one of the four freshly made nests as her own and collapsing in it.

She closed her eyes and had almost drifted to sleep when she heard her littermates coming in. She cracked an eye open and saw that Leopardpaw and Patchpaw were fast asleep.

Redpaw settled in a nest closest to her, "What did you do today?" She whispered. "Greeneyes showed me the two-leg place and the sandy hollow."

"We went to the RiverClan border. Met Corelfall and Hollydawn." Snowpaw said, obviously proud that she'd met warriors from another clan on her first - official - day out of camp. Even if none of them really knew the two rival clan warriors.

The black she-cat groaned. She didn’t want to talk with her siblings but forced her eyes to stay open.

"Pinestar took me to the ShadowClan border," Nightpaw replied sleepily. "And told me that we just have to get used to being on our paws all day, that soon they won't hurt as much as they do. After warning me about the Thunderpath."

"I collected moss." Bluepaw grumbled. "I wish I could've met another clans warrior or –"

"Will you four be quiet?" Patchpaw hissed from where he slept. "Some of us are trying to sleep."

The four of them fell silent, Nightpaw being grateful that someone else had told her siblings they needed to sleep instead of Nightpaw just falling asleep on them.

She closed her eyes and heard Bluepaw and Snowpaw climbing into their new nests. She listened as Redpaw curled in the nest she was already in.

It didn't take sleep long to claim her.

**Linebreak**

“Your belly is still too close to the ground.” Pinestar corrected her the next morning, circling her. “Don’t forget your tail has to be perfectly still, and you have to be aware of your surroundings. You might have to move your tail a little when moving through the forest so as to not startle the prey you're hunting.”

Nightpaw frowned. They’d been at this all morning. Her tail was night straight enough. It was  _ too straight _ . Her stomach was far too close to the ground. She’d been working on her hunter stance for moons, ever since Dappletail gave her some advice, there was no  _ way _ that it should still be this bad after all the practice she’d had.

She lifted her belly a little bit higher off the ground, forcing her tail to become still. She felt a flash of annoyance when she saw that 

Redpaw had already nearly perfected the basic stance. 

“Good.” Pinestar gave her a short nod, dropping beside her in the same crouch. He stalked forward, making it look graceful. She knew she’d probably end up falling on her face if she tried to move, but nonetheless tried going forward. 

She groaned at the awkward movement, and Pinestar offered no advice as to how to stalk forward more smoothly. She would  _ definitely  _ be practicing this move by herself when nobody was watching.

After a few more moves forward, she straightened. She had a feeling most of the movements were supposed to be instinctual. And she was failing miserably at that part of being a cat.

One would think that six moons of growing and learning in a new body that she'd at least be able to  _ stalk _ , which she’d always thought as something that cats just…  _ instinctively _ knew how to do.

Nightpaw fought the instinct to glance back over at Redpaw, who was probably still making the movements look easier than she felt it was. Maybe battle training would be easier.

She doubted it; it would probably be harder. If she struggled with  _ this _ , how would she be able to focus on what someone else was doing, what she was doing, what  _ they _ were planning, and what her response was going to be?

Suddenly, the  _ idea _ of battle training was making her anxiety skyrocket.

After a few moments, Pinestar sighed. Probably realising she was either lost in her thoughts or wasn’t going to try the movement again. 

“We’ll work on your stalking later.” the leader mewed, flicking his tail to get Greeneyes’s attention. “Do you know the difference between hunting a mouse and hunting a vole?” he asked her as Redpaw came to join them. The Leader and Warrior sat in front of them. She suddenly had a flashback to being in school and watching the teacher ask questions.

“You have to be light on your paws when hunting a mouse.” Nightpaw answered.  _ That _ was something she’d actually managed to remember from the books. There was another key difference, but she couldn’t recall the details. 

“And what about voles?” When she didn’t answer, he turned to Redpaw to see if she had the answer.

“Don’t voles make warning sounds when they’re caught? Louder than a mouse, I mean.” Redpaw offered.

Both toms gave a nod and Nightpaw briefly wondered if Pinestar regretted giving himself to her as his apprentice, even if it was only her second day. Redpaw would’ve been a better apprentice for him. Her sister seemed to be catching on a lot faster, and having more answers. 

The rest of the training session went on, both mentors asking them questions and showing them the different movements they’d have to make for each of the different types of prey. Eventually, they moved onto battle training.

Which wasn’t really battle training; they didn’t learn any battle moves. They learned what each movement of the tail meant that the leader of the patrol would be using if there was ever danger and they couldn’t talk. 

It was barely sun-high when Greeneyes decided to take Redpaw to explore more of the territory. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, ah, I did realise that there's a road between ShadowClan and ThunderClan in the forest territories. My bad. I'll eventually fix that. c:


End file.
